Friend in Need
by Moosashi
Summary: Link vanishes from Skyloft for days on end as his journey begins. Nobody in Skyloft seems to know why he vanishes, but a certain red-headed colleague of his wants to know. She decides to figure out just what he is up to, and after stumbling onto an answer that is beyond anything she expected, she discovers a friend in need.


A.N. I began writing this nearly seven months ago but never finished it until now. It is just a short story about Karane and Link. There are implications of romance - perhaps one-sided - but nothing major. The motivation behind this piece was the fact that practically everyone in Skyloft is oblivious to Link's quest to save Zelda; they also never figure it out. Also, Karane, while one of the more unique characters in my opinion, doesn't have much attention in the game. Anyways, enjoy the story!

* * *

Boy, things really have gotten screwed up around here, let me tell you. It all started the day of the Wing Ceremony, with that low-life Groose and his gang's shenanigans. Groose must have feared him. There's no other reason for imprisoning an innocent guardian bird. Groose must have feared him—feared Link.

It's no surprise really, given Groose's admiration for Zelda, who had been selected to pose as the goddess for this year's ceremony. If Groose won, he would have gotten his "special moment" with the blonde maiden. The bond that Zelda and Link shared was strong, and I guess that was the true source of Groose's fear; because Link himself wasn't a man to fear. He was lazy, slept in every day, and only did enough to get by in the academy. I, as well as Zelda and many of the others, could tell he had potential—and lots of it—but he lacked motivation.

But he certainly had motivation now.

After he claimed victory during the ceremony a terrible tragedy took place: Zelda disappeared. He certainly became a whole new man after that. He was desperate to find her and bring her back. His eyes had become slated with sadness, and if I had to guess, I would say that he is in love with Zelda.

Does that bother me? I don't really know. My heart belongs to Pipit, or so says the vibe I give off. I honestly don't know what I believe anymore.

I've been restless at night from all this. I just lay in my bed, staring up at the ceiling blankly. One night, I saw a beam of green light shoot across the sky. It was pretty and only lasted momentarily, but I was able to trace it with my eyes to the source. The beam of green light was coming from the goddess statue.

The following morning I asked amongst my academy colleagues if they had seen it, but they all had said no—except for one: Link. He didn't reply, and I could tell by his tense face that he knew something. For some reason he carried around a sword now. He disappeared for days on end after I had asked him about the light. None of the higher-ups mentioned Link or Zelda, not even Zelda's father, the headmaster.

* * *

It was another sleepless night for me. Deciding that lying in bed wasn't soothing my weary body, I got up to go take a bath. With a towel and rag in hand, I left my room silently. As I closed my door, I heard the opening of a door. Quickly turning to the source of the sound, I caught glimpse of a blur of green passing through the double-doors leading outside.

I knew of only one person who wore green other than me. Dropping my towel and rag, I jogged quietly down the hall and out the double-doors.

Following him was wrong, but I couldn't bring myself to turn back. I had to see what was going on, what this whole thing was about. He was so mysterious anymore. This was the only way to put all the pieces together. I convinced myself that it would be for my health, as I wouldn't be lying awake at night anymore after this—hopefully.

I kept my distance. Much to my favor, he never turned around or checked to see if he was being followed. He simply strode forward towards the goddess statue. When I reached the top of the stairs I almost let out a gasp upon seeing an entrance at the base of the statue. I hadn't been up here since the Wing Ceremony, and there certainly wasn't an entrance going into the statue then. Link entered and I pursued.

I hid behind a pillar and surveyed my surroundings. The place was decorated with ornate carvings, but what stood out most was the sword plinth in the center. Why a sword was inside the goddess statue was yet another mystery, as was the strange pillar that my green-garbed academy colleague was approaching. In his hands now was a slab of some sort—I couldn't really see much as he was in the way, but I assume he placed it onto the recess in the pillar. Suddenly there was a pulsing sound and the entrance to this place was lit up with a red glow for a few seconds. When I turned my attention back to my academy colleague, there was another person there.

This person—she was _flying_; and she was blue and purple! But her voice was pure and heaven-like. It was so soothing. I listened intently to what she was telling him, which was something about a land called Eldin where Zelda would be. I was beginning to think that there was more to Zelda's disappearance than what I had been told.

The woman with him began to sparkle and, in the blink of an eye, turned into a tiny and bright orb of light that flew into the hilt of his sword and vanished without a trace. I stepped out from behind the pillar and stood in front of the entrance. As he turned around and caught sight of me, he gasped loudly.

"Link." I called out quietly to him. I was at a loss for words, unable to decide if I should feel guilty and apologize for following him. Before I could decide, I gave in to my lust for answers. "What's going on here?"

His mouth hung open just slightly for a moment before he spoke, "Saving Zelda."

Saving Zelda? What did he mean by that? Was she in some sort of danger?

"She went missing right after the Wing Ceremony." I stated in recap, "She's been gone for days! Link, what happened to Zelda?" I had drawn closer to him as I spoke.

"Zelda is…"

Dead?

No that couldn't be it, or how would he be "saving" her?

"…it's kind of complicated." He said as he scratched the back of his head.

My fists clenched and I was about ready to fume, but then he spoke again, "Zelda has been chosen by the goddess to fulfill an important mission."

Suddenly my mind went numb and I let out a dumbfounded "Huh?"

He began to explain to me about the sword he pulled from the plinth here—the Goddess Sword. He told me about the world below, the Surface, and the pillar behind him with the two slabs (it looked like one was missing). I learned about how vast the world below is, and how equally dangerous it is. Someone named Giraham, who Link told me was a demon, was after Zelda. He chuckled slightly upon telling me of the Kirkwee, small creatures (with exception to their leader he pointed out) who acted like bushes to escape danger. It was a lot to take in, and my mind began to ache from trying to absorb and piece it all together.

"It must be hard." I said with concern, looking down at the floor.

"I have to do it," I heard him say, "This is my mission, to protect and bring her home."

To protect Zelda and bring her home—he sounded like a real knight. I examined him from foot to head as I raised my gaze. He never mentioned anything about his own safety or well-being, yet his clothes were torn in places and covered in dry blood. On parts of his face were small cuts too.

"But what about yourself?" I blurted, "Look at you, you're hurt."

He smiled softly at me, "I'm fine."

His assurances didn't persuade me. I stepped closer and took his hand in mine, quickly regretting the action upon feeling a gash through his glove. If I didn't know any better I'd say it was caused by a sword. I shook my head, holding his hand tenderly, "You're not fine. You need a break."

"No." He replied strongly. He didn't pull away though. His eyes mirrored his voice, a willful fire burning deep inside them. "The longer I wait the further away she becomes." Sadness tinged his words like a strong gust to his fiery determination.

My gaze fell to his hand, my thumb caressing the top of his glove. I opened my mouth to speak but stopped and gathered my thoughts. I was worried about him. I was worried about Zelda too. "I want Zelda back too," I told him, lifting my gaze to meet his eyes, "I don't want to lose anyone else either."

His lips formed a smile in response and he nodded. "I understand, thanks Karane."

At that moment awkwardness set in. I had followed him, had stumbled onto the secret journey he was having, and now was sharing a tender moment with him. With his free hand he scratched the back of his head.

"It'd probably be a pain to try and fly at this time of night anyways. Those knights are so grouchy!" He joked with laughter.

He was taking my advice to rest, which made me feel good—even if he hadn't much of a choice. My hand moved to his wrist and I tugged, "Well come-on then. You're wasting sleep!"

As we walked down the stairs from the goddess statue, I remembered the strange floating character from just a few minutes ago. "By the way, who was that with you back there?"

"Oh, you mean Fi." He told me after a moment of thought. "Like I said, it's kind of complicated."

I wanted to know more, but his unsure expression told me it should be left alone. As we neared the entrance to the academy, a voice called out to us.

"Who's there?"

Looking down over the ledge I saw that it was Pipit doing his nightly patrol.

"Karane?" He seemed shocked to see me outside, and it was justified. Being out this late wasn't like me. "What are you doing out here?" He asked with concern.

"Sorry Pipit, my fault." Link apologized, stepping closer to the edge so he was in Pipit's view. "We were just heading back inside actually."

Pipit seemed slightly disturbed, "Link?" He breathed his name as if the two of us being alone together in the middle of the night and coming back to the academy from some place in Skyloft was beyond possibility. In all honesty, if these events never occurred it would be. Suddenly I felt like it was a guilty pleasure.

"Is something wrong?" Link asked, noticing the baffled look behind the dancing firelight on Pipit's face.

"Nothing!" He replied hastily, lowering his torch and turning on his heels before marching off to continue his patrol, adding, "Get back inside now, it's dangerous out here."

Link gave a dry chuckle at the comment. We went back inside the academy. Even though my room was right there, I insisted on walking him to his room. I felt saddened at the thought that it would probably be a while until I see him again after he shut his door. There was no doubt that he would be gone first thing in the morning, probably before anyone else woke up. It was surprising to think that just a little over a week ago it was a chore for someone to wake him up.

Opening his door he turned to me with a smile. "Thanks Karane." He said for the second time. He probably noticed the puzzled look on my face because he quickly explained, "For letting me confide in you about everything I've seen. Nobody around here knows about the things I've witnessed and done."

I found myself hugging him tightly as I threw myself into his arms. The gesture was perhaps a little too friendly, but his words sparked more worry in me. If nobody really knew, what would happen if he vanished too?

"Hey now," He murmured, running his uninjured hand through my hair.

He probably felt awkward, and I couldn't really blame him. I loosened my arms and pulled back from the hug, blushing slightly at my sudden uncontrollable action. I averted his eyes.

"Do you think you could stay for a while?" He asked, his voice normal.

I met his eyes with curiosity upon his question.

"There's so much I want to tell you." He was smiling now with eagerness.

I nodded, and together we went inside his room. He sat on his bed and I sat in the chair by his desk, and he began to tell me everything about his journey, starting with how his best friend Zelda fell from her loftwing a little over a week ago…

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A.N. Hope you enjoyed this brief story!


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